Double Take
by hinatasgreatestfan
Summary: Hinata dies while fighting Pain, but a mysterious figure gives her a second chance at life.
1. Hinata's Trip

A/N: Yes, I'm rewriting Double Take for a third time. I felt that the old version was just going nowhere. And this version is something a bit more unique that I haven't seen anyone do, so I hope you all enjoy it. Use of Masashi Kishimoto done with the utmost respect. I don't own Naruto, though I wish I owned Hinata.

Chapter 1

Hinata had always been alone. All her life, ever since her mother died when she was five, she'd been alone. She had watched Naruto for years, watched him grow from the knucklehead she had fallen in love with back in the Academy due to his determination and his kind heart into the great ninja she now saw in front of her. Unfortunately, she could see that he was far outclassed by his current enemy. Naruto was pinned down, quite literally. The enemy had used some kind of black rods to pierce his arms, legs, and hands and hold him to the ground. This enemy, Pain, had annihilated the Hidden Leaf Village, and now he had Naruto at his mercy. Hinata felt something deep within herself that she had almost never felt in her peace-loving life. She felt rage, deep, boiling, burning, filling her veins with a fire she hardly knew she had.

She moved. Faster than she had ever moved before, she ran toward the one true love of her life. She leapt to attack, not believing she could defeat Pain, simply hoping to give Naruto the chance to do so.

As she leapt, she heard the pierced man speak to Naruto. "I guess I'll be taking the Kyubi from you now," he said. The Kyubi?! Hinata thought about that. In the span of an instant, everything she'd ever known, seen, heard, experienced with Naruto, it all made sense to her. Why the village hated him, why everyone told her to stay away from him, all of it added up. In her mind, though, she realized that Naruto wasn't anything evil, he was a hero, not only to her, but to the whole village. If only the village wasn't full of fools who couldn't see that, he wouldn't have had to live alone all his life.

Then Hinata landed, her fist impacting with the earth, creating a crater where she had landed. Pain had dodged the attack, but he was away from Naruto now. Hinata looked at Naruto, thinking how cruel it was for this man to pin Naruto down like that. She glared at Pain. "I won't let you hurt Naruto anymore!" she yelled.

"Hinata, get out of here! You're no match for him!" Naruto yelled at her from his position on the ground. Hinata allowed herself a small smile.

"I know. I'm being selfish, that's all. I'm here because I want to be, Naruto," she answered him. Glaring at Pain, she knew this man wouldn't wait long enough for her to say everything she needed to tell Naruto, so she shortened it. "I'm not afraid to die if it means I can protect you, Naruto. Because I love you, Naruto." She heard Naruto gasp in shock; her smile grew a little. Even if she died here and now, she would go to the afterlife satisfied; she had at least told Naruto how she felt. She attacked.

Naruto and Pain were both expecting her to go after Pain, but instead Hinata's attack broke one of the rods holding Naruto down. Before Pain could react, Hinata had broken all but three of his rods. Unfortunately for Hinata, though, that's when things went wrong. Well, not wrong per sé, but not according to plan either. Pain picked her up from a solid twenty feet away and threw her into the air, then straight back to the ground. Hinata landed on her head, which split open. Blood began to seep into her eyes, blurring her vision to the point it was all she could do to see Naruto. She moved, relying on instinct; she felt a deep satisfaction as another rod broke under her attack. Then Pain lifted her and threw her away from Naruto. Her head was bleeding far worse now, blurring her vision to the point she was almost completely blind. She didn't care; she still knew where Naruto was, so she moved. Pain was in between them, but she didn't care. If he wouldn't move, she'd move him. Sure enough, Pain moved aside, dodging what he believed was an attack aimed for him. Again, Hinata moved past and broke another rod. This left only the rod in Naruto's hands unbroken. Naruto, during all this, was trying to get his limbs free, with no real success. Hinata moved to break the final rod, but, before she could, things went from bad to worse.

Pain lifted the midnight-haired girl into the air and brought her toward himself. In his hand was one of the rods he'd been using on Naruto. She flew straight to it and was impaled upon the rod. She felt it pierce her lung and knew she was going to die this day. It was then that she truly despaired. Not for herself, she was willing to die, but for Naruto, she despaired. She had been his last chance to be saved, helped, and she had failed him. Hinata closed her eyes to allow death to claim her, a single tear falling from her eyes. Just as she felt darkness claiming her forever, Hinata experienced something even stranger. Everything stopped.

All sound, all movement, all breathing even, stopped. It was like someone had some kind of universe-controlling VCR and had hit the pause button. She opened her eyes and was surprised to find a man standing between Naruto and Pain. The man had a round face, almond-shaped eyes, and dark skin. His eyes, which she suspected normally showed a deep kindness, were currently filled with an intense rage that made her previous anger seem like a candle compared to the sun. Hinata could move, obviously, as could Pain it seemed, but Naruto, a short distance away, had totally frozen. She was perplexed by this, so she didn't speak, simply watched as the new arrival approached her and Pain.

The man glared at Pain. "What the FUCK are you THINKING, Nagato?" the man raged. "I know Naruto was going to end up like that, but Hinata? I did NOT tell you to do that to HER!" Saying this, the man reared back and punched Pain across the face with more force than Hinata had ever seen concentrated in any attack. The chakra rods in Pain's nose were sent flying from the force of the blow, while Pain's head was turned to an unnatural angle; Hinata was sure his neck had broken. Pain simply turned and looked at the man in front of him.

"I must teach the world the true meaning of pain, Masashi," Pain answered after a moment. "You know that." The man, now dubbed Masashi, glared with even more rage at Pain and punched him again, this time an uppercut, which sent the rods in Pain's chin flying. Hinata noticed that each rod that was removed seemed to make Pain have more trouble controlling himself. His breathing was erratic, and now his speech was different when he spoke again. "Don't blame me, Masashi, you made me this way."

Hinata was confused. Who in the world was this man? And how was he able to attack Pain so...effectively? She didn't know, but the sheer power of the man scared her. Masashi swung once more, knocking Pain to the ground. "Stay there," he snarled. Then the man turned toward Hinata and smiled, his eyes filling with the kindness she'd suspected they usually held when she first saw him. Hinata couldn't help it, she smiled back. "Hinata, my heroine," he said softly. Hinata was even more confused now. Her? A heroine? Hardly. The man approached her and looked at her with what Hinata could only describe as deep love filling his eyes. Hinata still had a small smile on her face. "You will remember, Hinata. Know that this is all real, that this isn't a dream. I would recommend you not tell anyone, they'd probably think you were insane. But you will remember. No one else will, and for that I do sincerely apologize, but you will remember."

"What do you mean?" the shy kunoichi asked. "I'll remember what?"

"All of this," Masashi answered, sweeping one hand around them. "You'll remember it all, everything that led to this, everything that's happened here, and you'll have a chance to change it. As I said, know that this is real, not a dream, but no one else will remember but you. Hinata, my heroine, make me proud." With that, he embraced Hinata gently, tenderly, then stepped back, smiling at her. He made a circular motion with his left hand, and Hinata was blinded by a flash of intense white light.

Hinata opened her eyes. Looking around, she realized she was in her room in the Hyuga Compound. She gasped. "What in the world happened?" she asked herself aloud, then gasped again as she heard her voice. Leaping from her bed, where she had somehow been laying when she opened her eyes, Hinata ran to the bathroom and gazed into the mirror. Her twelve-year-old self gazed back. What in the world? She thought a moment. The last thing she remembered, she was fighting Pain to try to free Naruto and she'd been impaled on the man's chakra rod. She knew that's what it was now, seeing as she remembered feeling his chakra invading her body where the rod pierced her.

Hinata had to ask herself if she'd been having a very vivid, detailed dream. She lifted her nightgown and, looking at her stomach where the rod had pierced her, got a small shock when she found a very tiny scar in that exact spot. Checking her back, she found a matching scar there. So it was real.

But...what in the world had happened? How was she back here, now? She didn't know, but she had a feeling she was being given a chance to change things. Taking a deep breath, Hinata firmed her resolve; she would change things, she would make them better, and she would make sure Naruto not only survived that battle, when the time for it came, but that they would fight and survive it together. She blushed as she realized, in her own mind, she was saying that they would be together in life by then, not just in battle. Then she took a deep breath, smiled, and nodded to herself. Yes, she would earn a place by his side, and they would be together by then!

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to the midnight-haired beauty, Naruto awoke to an extremely painful sneeze; he sneezed so hard, in fact, he fell out of bed and smacked his head on his nightstand. "Ow!" he moaned to himself, rubbing it. He looked at the time; it was a bit earlier than he normally got up, but he shrugged that off and got up to get ready for class. He didn't want to be late for once, though where that urge came from, he had no idea. He just had a feeling something important was going to happen today.

Hinata had a small smile on her face as she went about her morning routine. Today, she had decided, she would talk to Naruto, she wouldn't tell him how deeply she felt for him, not yet, but she would talk to him. And she knew she could do that without stuttering now, so maybe, just maybe, she'd get his attention. Even if not, she would become his friend sooner than the first time.

Her mind made up, Hinata finished her morning routine and left the Hyuga Compound for the Academy. On her way out, she'd checked her calendar. She had a week left before she was going to graduate from the Academy, she'd discovered. She had almost laughed at herself as she thanked her old self for being so meticulous about marking each day that passed on the calendar. It was just one thing she had control over, and, in a world where she controlled next to nothing, she savored the feeling.

Hinata arrived at the Academy to find that most of her classmates had yet to arrive, but, surprisingly, Naruto was there. She might love the guy, but she knew he was nothing if not tardy. He was almost always late to every class, if he showed up at all. So seeing him there, not only on time, but early, was a major surprise to her. However, Hinata wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth, so she calmly approached the blond.

Naruto had been sitting by himself, in the back corner of the room, expecting that if something was meant to happen, it would happen regardless of what he did. So he was simply there, not really doing much, just waiting to see what would happen. He looked up when he heard the door of the classroom open. He saw it was Hinata. Not expecting whatever was going to happen to have anything to do with her, he went back to contemplating the grain of the wood of his desk. He had discovered a couple interesting designs in it and was making shapes out of them.

Then, the last thing Naruto had expected to happen did. Hinata approached him, a small smile on her face, and sat by him. Naruto knew who Hinata was, of course, there wasn't a single person in his class he didn't at least know on sight, but Hinata was the last one he'd thought would approach him. Hinata was always blushing, always stuttering, tapping her fingers together in a way, he had to admit, he found very cute, and never once did she speak to him without looking away. All of this had led Naruto to believe Hinata either hated him or was afraid of him. Yet here she was, sitting right next to him in an otherwise empty classroom and smiling at him. Naruto hesitantly returned her smile.

Hinata beamed. Naruto was smiling at her; it was hesitant, granted, but he was smiling at her! It was a small victory, but Hinata would take what she could get. Plus, while the smile was small and hesitant, she could tell in an instant it was a sincere smile, not one of the huge fake grins he usually hid his feelings behind. In spite of herself and her new-found confidence, Hinata blushed slightly.

"Good morning, Naruto," she said, her eyes full of happiness to be talking to him. Naruto, slightly surprised she didn't stutter, felt his smile growing a little as he observed her.

"Good morning, Hinata," he answered. "How are you today?"

Hinata blushed a little at his sincere tone. "I'm fine, Naruto, and how are you?" she answered, her smile still firmly in place. Hinata was glad this part of her plan was going so easily.

Naruto smiled again, more sincerely this time. _"Maybe,"_ he thought to himself. _"Maybe, just maybe, it is Hinata that has something to do with what I thought was coming today."_ He didn't say that to her, of course. He answered her question. "I'm okay. I'm really excited about graduation next week," he said, grinning. Hinata just smiled at him. For some reason, he felt like he could talk to Hinata. "I'm really nervous, too. I just can't get the darned Clone Jutsu down. This is my third time trying, and I just don't think I'll be able to do it."

Hinata grinned to herself; she'd known he failed at the Clone Jutsu, of course. But she also knew of a certain Jutsu that she herself could barely perform even at her best, but that he had learned in a mere few hours the night of their graduation. This was perfect! She could teach Naruto the jutsu in question, thereby gaining not only his attention, but his admiration. She knew of his training methods later on, his elemental affinity, even how he had created his version of the Rasengan, the Wind Style Rasenshuriken. She didn't want him to feel she was manipulating him or tricking him or anything, but she did want to help him, and this was the best way to do so, at present at least.

"Hey, Naruto," she said, smiling. "How would you like to learn a new jutsu?" Naruto looked up at her, surprise showing clearly on his face.

"Really, Hinata?" She nodded. "What is it?" he asked, always eager and excited to learn new things.

"I'll tell you after class," she said, giving him a mysterious smile and putting a finger to her lips. He smiled and nodded. "I'll meet you at Training Ground Seven," she told him, knowing from her past memories he had trained there alone that day. "How about we go there right after class?" she asked, blushing slightly as she realized he could interpret this as a date of sorts.

Naruto, for his part, was still surprised at how gutsy Hinata was being, but he wasn't about to pass up a chance to learn a new jutsu, so he gladly agreed. "This is awesome, Hinata," he said, then couldn't help asking. "But I am curious. What's gotten into you today, that's made you so sure of yourself?"

Hinata gasped slightly; she should have known Naruto of all people would notice if she started talking to him and not stuttering! "Oh, nothing, really," she said, trying to pass it off like it was no big deal. "I just decided to stop worrying and go for what I want." She smiled at him, hoping he'd believe her; she wasn't really ready to tell anyone, never mind Naruto, about her time traveling experience, especially considering she had no idea how she got sent back, why she got sent back, or even why only her.

Naruto could tell something was up, more than what Hinata had said, but he couldn't think of any way to bring it up without bothering or upsetting the normally shy girl, so he just grinned and accepted what she'd said. Hinata breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Naruto wasn't going to press her. Then Naruto had a thought. "Hey, Hinata?" he said. Hinata turned to him and smiled, waiting for him to say something more. "I always thought you were kinda...weird I guess. But you know, you seem really nice. Maybe we could be friends?"

Hinata couldn't help giggling; that was a lot easier to hear like that rather than the way she'd heard it the first time. Plus, he'd asked if they could be friends, which made the preceding comment more than worth it. Naruto looked at her strangely, clearly wondering if she'd lost her mind, but he didn't say anything. Hinata just smiled at him. "I would love nothing more than to be your friend, Naruto," she said, giving him a sincere smile. Naruto returned her smile with one of his own. Hinata felt her heart melt at his honest smile. She couldn't help but return it. So it was then that Iruka Umino, their Academy instructor, entered the door to find his favorite student and the notoriously shy Hyuga Heiress sitting next to one another and smiling at one another.

Iruka was a good instructor, so he knew that neither Naruto nor Hinata had many friends. As a result, seeing the two of them form a bond seemingly from nowhere told the man that the two likely should be on a team. He looked at his class list and saw, sadly, that this was highly unlikely, considering their grades and their respective abilities and such. Of course, Iruka himself did have some say in this, and, if Hinata could improve just a little during the next week and if the two continued to get along well, he knew he would recommend very highly that the two be on the same team. He smiled at the two, then sat at his desk to wait for class to start and for the rest of their classmates to arrive.

Naruto and Hinata chatted until their classmates arrived, then both did their best to concentrate on Iruka's lecture. Naruto had trouble for the same reasons he always had trouble with this, partly that Iruka's voice tended to drone when he lectured and partly that he just had trouble focusing on anything for that long. Hinata had issues with it this time because she knew what Iruka was going to say, almost word for word, before he said it. Hinata did notice Naruto was trying harder than he usually did, which led her to believe he was trying to impress her, which was accurate; she barely suppressed a giggle at the thought of Naruto trying to impress her.

Class that day passed without serious incident, and soon enough Naruto and Hinata were leaving to head to their after-class training. Naruto was so excited to be learning something new he was practically bouncing off the trees as they walked along the path to the training ground. Hinata was just enjoying her time with her crush and not worrying about anything else. "Hey, Hinata!" Naruto called out from where he was running a bit ahead of her. She looked up at the blond, a small smile on her face. "What's this awesome jutsu you're going to show me?"

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to either preteen, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, was pulling out his crystal ball to check on the blond. He cast the jutsu to activate the ball; moments later, Naruto became clear in the middle of the ball. He cast a second jutsu to be able to hear the two. Little did he know that doing so would backfire on him, courtesy of Masashi. Said man was watching over his heroine, and he didn't want Hiruzen to see what Hinata was doing just then, so he intervened on her behalf. As the jutsu Hiruzen cast took effect, what he saw rather than Naruto and Hinata was a very clear view of the inside of the women's bath. Of course, the effect of this was immediate: Hiruzen fell to the floor, unconscious from a massive nosebleed. Masashi, unseen by all, fell to the ground, laughing. Without Hiruzen's chakra keeping it active, the ball fell idle.

Hinata blushed a little at Naruto's enthusiasm, but her smile never wavered. "Come back here, Naruto," she said. Obviously she didn't want to tell him where others would hear her. He came back to walk beside her. "Listen, Naruto, you can't tell anyone we're doing this, all right? Not even Iruka-sensei or the Hokage, no one, all right?"

Naruto pondered that a moment. "All right, I guess, but why?" he asked.

Hinata was a little surprised he'd think that through enough to bother asking why, but she was also proud of him. "Well, first off, Naruto, you don't want everyone knowing your potential. For another thing, this jutsu I'm going to show you is technically a forbidden one. Don't ask me how I know it, I can't tell you, not yet at least. Just promise me you won't tell anyone about what we're doing out here," she told him. Naruto nodded his agreement to the promise. "Oh, one more thing, Naruto," Hinata said then, suddenly remembering what happened to him the night of their graduation. "No matter what, never let Mizuki-sensei see you using this jutsu, even if it's for the exams. Never, all right?"

Naruto looked surprised at that. "Well, all right," he said after a moment. "I guess I'll just have to show Iruka-sensei in private if it comes to that, huh?" Hinata breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.

"That would work, Naruto, and yes, by the way, this jutsu will let you pass the final exam next week," she told him. Naruto looked surprised at that, but didn't say anything. "I know you've got the Substitution and Transformation Jutsu down, so all you really need to get down is the Clone Jutsu, right?" Naruto nodded. "But you can't seem to get it down. Your clones are always terrible, right?"

Naruto nodded again. Then, out of nowhere, a thought struck him. "Wait, Hinata, how do you know all this?" Hinata froze.

How did she know all this? Well, obviously because she'd been following him, watching almost every second of his training, watching him try the Clone Jutsu over and over, watching everything he did for the last several years. But how in the hell could she tell him that? _"Oh, yeah, did I forget to mention, I've been stalking you for the last few years?"_ she thought to herself. Yeah, that'd go over really well. Hinata scoffed at herself silently. _"Well, now you've been caught out, Hinata,"_ she thought to herself. _"So, what are you going to do about it? You should have known he'd find out about all this eventually. Now he's asked you, so now what?"_ By now, Hinata was in full-on panic mode. What the hell was she going to tell him? Hinata wished fervently she had an answer for him, but she didn't, so she did what she always did in stressful situations. She fainted.

Naruto, seeing Hinata fall, ran to catch her. He was surprised the midnight-haired girl was so light in his arms, but he wasn't going to complain. Picking her up, he carried her to the training ground they'd been going to use; as the training ground in question was where the Hero's Memorial Stone was, Naruto leaned her against the stone and started practicing his taijutsu while he waited for her to wake up.

Naruto might have seemed like he was just training the same as he always did, but internally, it was very different. Normally, he trained without a thought on his mind outside it, but today he had to consciously focus on what he was doing to keep his mind off the small girl resting against the stone not far away. He could see her sitting there as he attacked the stumps in the middle of the clearing. He couldn't help looking at her from time to time. She looked more peaceful than anything he'd ever seen before, and, Naruto had to admit, she was much cuter than even Sakura. What's more, they were friends now, right? He couldn't say the same for the pink-haired girl, that's for sure. Well, as a friend, and as a man, Naruto wasn't going to leave her there. He had caused her to faint and the least he could do was to protect her while she was unconscious and be there when she woke up. Besides, she was going to teach him a jutsu, so he had to be there for that!

At one point in the midst of Naruto's training, Hinata shifted just enough that her blossoming figure was painfully clear to the training blond. He stopped training and stared at her for several moments. Then suddenly, he realized what he was doing and scolded himself. _"I will NOT become a pervert!" _he yelled at himself, trying to ignore the slight nosebleed he had developed. After that, he attacked the stumps with renewed vigor to keep his mind off the girl.

So it was that Naruto trained for about half an hour with Hinata leaning against the Heroes' Memorial Stone. Hinata woke slowly, wondering where she was and what had happened. She had a crick in her neck, and she was sitting up with something hard against her back. She looked around, blinking in the bright light, and saw Naruto training while she was sitting against the Memorial Stone. She rose slowly, stretched to relieve her tense muscles and joints, and approached Naruto, who had stopped training when she stood.

Hinata approached Naruto, smiling softly. Naruto couldn't help but notice the kindness in Hinata's eyes as she came toward him. By now, the blond was kicking himself for not noticing this girl before. He'd been trying so hard to get Sakura's attention, he hadn't even noticed the kindest girl in his class, yet now that he had, he couldn't help comparing the two. Where Sakura only had eyes for Sasuke, Hinata had offered to help him learn a new jutsu. Where Sakura would bash him over the head on a daily basis, Hinata was smiling happily at him. Where Sakura yelled and screamed, Hinata spoke softly and kindly. He couldn't help but find Sakura severely wanting in light of those facts.

Naruto groaned in annoyance at himself, wishing he could go back in time to tell himself when he entered the Academy to notice Hinata, rather than waiting till now, when their time together in class was almost over. Hinata, watching him as he thought, could tell he was beating himself up about something. "What's wrong, Naruto?" she asked, concerned.

Naruto looked up at Hinata. "Oh, nothing, just kicking myself for not noticing you sooner, that's all," he said back. Hinata blushed. "So, Hinata, what's this awesome jutsu you're going to show me?"

Hinata smiled. Naruto and his one-track mind. "Well, Naruto, like I told you before, it's a forbidden jutsu, technically, and in all reality, I can't even do it. But I know how it's done, and I know the hand sign for it, so I can teach it to you," she told him. Naruto grinned. Hinata returned the smile. "The jutsu is called the Shadow Clone Jutsu. The thing is, unlike the normal Clone Jutsu, which takes a tiny bit of chakra but a lot of control, the Shadow Clone Jutsu takes a lot of chakra and not a lot of control, so you should be able to do it."

Naruto was almost jumping up and down in excitement. "Show me!" he said. Hinata nodded and formed a single hand sign, the first two fingers of each hand in a cross form. Naruto copied it. Hinata activated her Byakugan, and their training began.

Before Naruto or Hinata realized it, three hours had passed. With Hinata's help and explanations of how the Shadow Clone Jutsu worked, which weren't as detailed as they could have been, but sufficed, Naruto had mastered it. Watching with her Byakugan, Hinata had helped Naruto realize what he was doing wrong, which had sped up the process significantly. Naruto had finally produced twenty clones on his most recent attempt. To Naruto's surprise, he had found the clones were solid, which Hinata knew, of course, from her memories of seeing him use them.

Hinata decided to tell Naruto the secret to training with the Shadow Clones. "Naruto, listen up," she said. Naruto turned to her with a smile and gave her his full attention. "You'll want to train with your clones from now on, all right?" He raised an eyebrow at her like she was insane. "When your clones dispel, you get back the chakra they had left and all the memories they acquired while they existed. So if you train with them, you can increase the efficiency of your training by thousands of times."

Naruto thought about that for a moment, then his face lit up with a grin. "I get it, that's awesome! You're the best, Hinata!" he said, then ran to Hinata and swept her into a hug.

Hinata may have been more confident in herself, but being hugged like that still elicited a blush from her so red the setting sun was dull by comparison. The setting sun! Hinata suddenly realized how late it was, and she entered full-on panic mode.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, I must get home," she said, her eyes fearful. "I'll see you in class tomorrow, okay?" As she spoke, she was backing away quickly, preparing to run for home.

Then Naruto spoke up. "Let me walk you home, Hinata," he said, giving her a smile.

"My father wouldn't like that," Hinata answered. "H-He d-doesn't like you v-very m-much." She stuttered a bit since she was honestly afraid of how Naruto would react to that.

"Oh, sorry," he said, his eyes moving down. Then he groaned in frustration. "I wish I knew why everyone hated me!" Then he realized Hinata was still there. "Sorry, Hinata, I didn't mean you. Just, everyone in the village seems to hate me, and I have no idea why," he told her, his eyes filled with unshed tears.

He blinked a few times so he wouldn't cry, but then he got a surprise. Hinata came to him, wrapped her arms around him, and whispered in his ear. "It's okay, Naruto, I know why they hate you, and they're just a bunch of fools. I'm here for you now, Naruto, it's all right to cry, I know how it hurts to be alone, I've been alone too, but now we won't be alone, never again. We'll always be here for one another, right?"

Naruto looked at the girl hugging him and nodded. "Yes, Hinata, you're right, we'll always be here for one another. Thank you," he said and hugged her back. Then he had a thought. "You said you know why everyone hates me. Why?"

"I can't tell you, Naruto," she answered. "Not without the Hokage's permission anyway." Naruto looked disappointed, but then he nodded.

"All right, we'll go talk to the Hokage tomorrow about that, together," he said, to which Hinata nodded. "For now, I'll walk you home, and if your father gets mad, I'll talk to him." Hinata blushed at the thought of Naruto protecting her, but she couldn't deny him, so she just nodded again.

As the two were leaving the training area, Naruto shyly took Hinata's hand in his. Hinata gave his hand a squeeze, and the two walked the remaining distance hand-in-hand. When they arrived at the Hyuga Compound, Hinata released Naruto's hand. They approached the gate, Hinata growing nervous as she got closer. Both Hinata and Naruto were surprised to find Hinata's father, Hiashi, waiting for them at the gate.

"Hinata," he said, his eyes somewhat cold. "You're home. And I see you've brought Naruto with you. Care to explain this?"

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck, grinning his fake grin for Hiashi. "She was helping me out with something after class, sir. I apologize for keeping her out later than usual," Naruto said. "When she said you'd be upset that she was out late, I offered to walk her home so I could explain."

Hinata waited for the imminent explosion. What happened was a huge shock to her. Her father, Hiashi Hyuga, the coldest person she'd ever known, SMILED at Naruto. "Well, Naruto, I must say you do the village proud. You're training when you need not, you're seeking help from your fellow future ninja, and you're taking responsibility for your actions. You do your village very proud indeed, young man," Hiashi said. Naruto's fake grin changed slightly; it became a more sincere one.

Naruto bowed. "Thank you, sir. I'll look forward to spending more time with your daughter, if you'll allow me," he said. Hinata gasped, wondering not only where Naruto learned to speak like that, but why he would say such a thing to her father. Then Hinata got an even bigger shock than her father smiling at Naruto. He actually LAUGHED! It was quiet, somewhat proper, much like Hiashi himself, yet he was actually laughing!

"Well said, Naruto. I would be proud to know my daughter was spending her time with an upstanding youth such as yourself," he said.

Naruto looked at the man. "Might I ask you one thing, sir?" he asked. Hiashi gestured for him to continue. "I was under the impression everyone in the village hated me. Why are you being so accepting of me?"

Hiashi thought a moment on how to answer that. "I choose to make my own judgments, not to rely on the minds of others, Naruto," he said. "I know nothing of you except for our interaction here today and rumors, and I am choosing to believe the former. And Naruto, so far, I like what I see. So I would be proud to know my daughter had a friend such as yourself."

Naruto smiled, an honest smile this time, at both Hiashi and Hinata. "I am her friend, sir," he said simply, then turned and left.

Once Naruto was gone, Hiashi turned to Hinata. "Hinata, I see you're walking differently today, your attitude is different, you seem unafraid. I presume this difference in you can be credited to the young man who just left?" he asked.

Hinata blushed. "Yes, Father, you might say that," she answered. It was true, after all. Naruto had brought about the changes in her, albeit those events hadn't happened yet. Hiashi nodded, his arms folded into his sleeves.

"I approve, Hinata," he said. "I believe he will be a positive influence on you. Perhaps we could have him over here for dinner some night?" Hinata gasped at this, shocked her father would suggest that. "Well, Hinata, if you are going to spend time with the young man, I should get to know him, should I not?" Hinata couldn't deny that, so she just nodded, still in shock at everything that had just happened.

Hiashi, a small smile on his face, turned from his daughter and proceeded into the compound and to his study. He chuckled as he pulled out a certain old paper. He'd hidden it for twelve years now, knowing some day he would pull it out again. It was a marriage contract.

xxxxxx

Hinata made her way to her rooms, mulling over her day. It had gone well, better than she'd ever dared hope, in fact. She was friends with Naruto, her father approved of the blond, who had shown more manners in ten minutes than she knew he had in him, and she'd saved him from the fiasco with Mizuki by teaching him the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Arriving at her room, she went in and changed quickly into her nightgown; it was late enough she should be heading to bed soon. Just as she was laying down, she heard a knock on her door.

"Yes?" she said.

"It's me, Hinata," a small voice said. "May I come in?"

Hinata smiled. It was her sister, Hanabi. "Sure, Hanabi, come on in," she said back. Hanabi opened the door and came in. Hinata was so happy to see her little sister, she got up and walked to the girl and hugged her.

Hanabi looked up at Hinata like she'd gone crazy. "Hi, Hinata," she said. "What's gotten into you all of a sudden?" Hinata just smiled at her. "Good day, huh?"

"You might say that," Hinata said back, still smiling.

"Well, I'm guessing it has something to do with a certain blond-haired, blue-eyed boy, am I right, Sister?" Hanabi said, grinning at Hinata in a teasing manner.

Hinata just smiled back. "Yep, it does, as a matter of fact. I just got in a few minutes ago from training with Naruto for the last few hours," she told her sister. Hinata got up and began to dance around her bed slowly, her smile seemingly permanent. Hanabi just watched her, wondering what had gotten into her big sister today. "Today has been the best day of my life, Hanabi, and I'm really happy."

Hanabi smiled; she might act cold at times and she might think she was a stronger better fighter than Hinata, but in truth, she loved her sister. "Good for you, Hinata, I'm happy for you," the younger girl said.

Hinata hugged Hanabi again. "We're friends, Hanabi! He actually said we're friends!" Hinata gushed. She was just so excited about it, she had to tell someone, and Hanabi was the first who was willing to listen.

Hanabi smiled. "Hey, that's a first step, Hinata. I'm really happy for you. Are you hungry, Sister? It's late, but there's still food out there if you want to eat."

Hinata finally calmed down and sat on her bed, a satisfied smile on her face. "No, I'm all right, I'm just going to get to sleep. I'll talk to you tomorrow, all right, Hanabi?" Hanabi smiled at her sister and nodded, then left her room. By the time Hanabi returned to her own room, Hinata was sound asleep, the smile still on her face.


	2. Veiled Intentions

Chapter 2

Hinata awoke the following morning feeling slightly confused. She slowly smiled to herself as she remembered what had happened the previous day; unlike her first life, she was friends with Naruto now! Between that and the surprises from her father last night, Hinata was, needless to say, a very happy girl.

Hinata's every move that morning, viewed by anyone else, would have looked like a dance. She spun and twirled in her steps, she pranced around her room, at one point she even curtsied to herself for no apparent reason. It was fortunate for her that almost no one saw her, since most of the people in the Hyuga Compound would have viewed such activity as completely ridiculous.

Hinata, though she didn't know it, did have a one-person audience that morning as she went about her routine. She would likely never know it, but her father had watched parts of her morning and evening routines every day for the last seven years; how could he not when the girl reminded him so much of his now-deceased wife? He generally watched her moving around her room, but he always left her in privacy for her showers and such. This morning in particular, as her every move was filled with grace and the smile she sported seemed to be a part of her somehow, Hiashi couldn't help smiling himself. He looked down at the piece of paper on his desk, the marriage contract he had pulled from his drawer the night before. He chuckled to himself; this was going to be fun.

As Hinata was leaving her home that morning, she got a slight surprise. Her father appeared seemingly from nowhere. "Good morning, Hinata," he said. "Off to the Academy?" Hinata nodded. "Good, have a good day today. Please invite your classmate from last night to dinner this evening, I have something to discuss with the two of you." Hinata, not trusting her voice at that moment, merely nodded. Hiashi smiled at her as she disappeared out the door.

Hinata made her way to the Academy, her mind on a million things. She was trying to figure out what had happened to send her back and how she might be able to change things. Then she had to smile as she realized she already had changed things, if only a little. She and Naruto were friends, and they hadn't even graduated yet! She sighed; if only they would get to be on a team together this time, maybe she would be able to help him. Then she smiled to herself, remembering she already had helped him at least some by telling him to train with his clones; after all, he hadn't figured that one out until after he returned from his two-and-a-half-year training trip last time. Well, he'd done it, but he hadn't figured out the memory thing until later.

Upon arriving at the Academy, Hinata got a small surprise. She was plenty early, yet Naruto was there ahead of her! Okay, she knew that since they were friends now, the blond wanted to impress her, but this was getting a little silly. Walking up to the boy, Hinata smiled shyly. She was more confident, yes, but being this close to Naruto still made her feel shy.

"Good morning, Hinata," Naruto said. "Did everything go all right with your dad last night?" He was trying his best not to show it, but Naruto was deeply worried he'd gotten his newest friend in trouble.

"Yeah, it was fine," she said back. "Actually, my dad told me to invite you over for dinner tonight. I'm not sure why, but he seems to have taken an interest in you. So...will you come?"

Naruto smiled at her. "Do you want me to come, Hinata?" he asked her. Hinata blushed; she hadn't expected _that_ to be his response.

The now blushing girl took a moment to think about Naruto's question. Did she want him to come to dinner? Well, if it was only going to be him and her, the answer would have been obvious: HELL YES! However, that wasn't the case. Her _father_ would be there. Nonetheless, it would be an evening spent in Naruto's presence, and, if last night was anything to go by especially, that was never a bad thing. However, would having Naruto be around her father be good? Hinata took a deep breath and decided to take the chance.

"Yes, Naruto, I would like for you to come to dinner with my family tonight," she said quickly so as to not let herself back out.

Naruto smiled and rested a hand on Hinata's arm, unintentionally making the girl shiver with pleasure at his touch. "Then it would be my pleasure, Hinata," he said, his eyes shining.

Hinata thought about what he'd said and suddenly realized what he meant: it would be his pleasure because _she_ wanted him there. Hinata blushed deeply. She would have said something, but just then she looked up and saw a man standing in front of the classroom, going through the files in Iruka-sensei's desk. He looked oddly familiar to her, but she couldn't think of his name.

The man looked up at her and smiled. "Ah, Hinata, my heroine, you have done well so far. You have made yourself into the one thing Naruto needed more than anything at this time: his friend. His only friend, really. I believe the two of you both now fear that you'll be on different teams like first time, am I right?"

Hinata blushed. Then she realized that Naruto had frozen; he seemed to be leaning toward her, but he had totally stopped moving. Even his breathing had stopped. The phenomenon gave her an odd sense of déjà vu, though she couldn't place where she'd felt this before. "Well, I can't speak for Naruto," she said cautiously. "But I know I wish we were going to be on a team together."

The man smiled at Hinata. "You don't remember me, do you?" he asked. Hinata shook her head. "Figures. You will. For now, just trust that I have your back, and if I can, I will help you and Naruto. Come up here."

Normally, Hinata hated being ordered around like that, but she could sense the power emanating off this man, so she never once thought to question him. She rose and moved up to the front of the room and looked at the files in the man's hands when he held them out to her. "But...this is..." she said.

The man nodded. "Team assignment suggestions Iruka plans to give," he finished for her. "As of right now, since Naruto is dead last and Sasuke is the Rookie of the Year, they're going to be on a team together. That, I'm afraid even I can't change. However, the tradition is that the kunoichi joined with the best and last students is the one who either has the best chakra control or who is the best overall. Now, Sakura has the best control, so she would normally be with them, as you know.

"However," he continued. "If you look right here, you'll see that you yourself are only a slight bit behind Sakura. I believe since you've had the extra experience of your first life, you should be much better than her now. Obviously, however, you don't want to show all of your potential while you're in the Academy. If I'm not mistaken, though, one part of the final exams for you kunoichi is a spar between you and another, right?" Hinata nodded to this. "As I thought. So, when that comes up, request that your opponent be Sakura. Let her show her skills enough that she will be with Kiba and Shino, but once she's shown her skills, take her down. That way you'll graduate just above her and be placed with Naruto and Sasuke."

Hinata gasped. "So you mean...if I beat Sakura in our spar, I'll be with Naruto?"

The man grinned at her completely ignoring Sasuke. "Well, Naruto and Sasuke, yes," he said.

Hinata blushed a moment, then nodded in determination. "All right," she said. "I'll do it. If that's what it takes to be with Naruto, that's what I'll do."

The man rested his hand on Hinata's head a moment. "That's my heroine," he said. "Now, go on back to your seat, don't want Naruto wondering how you got up here so fast." Hinata didn't think to question that, she just moved back and sat by Naruto again. Naruto's movement resumed, and Hinata got a major shock. Naruto kissed her on the cheek! Hinata felt her whole body heat up as if her whole body, from the roots of her hair to her toes, were blushing.

Naruto saw Hinata turn red and thought he had offended her somehow. "I'm sorry, Hinata," he said, turning away from her, his own face slightly red.

Hinata turned to the blond. "Sorry?" she asked. "Sorry for what, Naruto?" Naruto turned and looked at her, surprised to find a look of genuine confusion on her face.

"For...well, for kissing you, of course," he said.

Hinata blushed again. "Why would you be sorry for that, Naruto?" she asked.

Naruto looked shocked that she would ask that. "Well, you turned red when I did, and people only turn red like that with me when they're mad. So I just assumed me doing that made you mad."

Hinata gasped. "No, Naruto," she said quickly. He looked at her in surprise again. "I'm not mad, not at all. I was just surprised, and, well, to be totally honest, you doing that embarrassed me. That's all, honest."

Naruto smiled, hesitantly at first, then a sincere grin broke onto his face. "Oh, I'm glad. I didn't want you to be angry with me, Hinata," he said.

A sudden urge came over Hinata, and, for once, the girl didn't hold herself back. She reached over and took Naruto's cheek in one hand and turned him toward her. "There's only one thing you did wrong, Naruto," she said, her voice playful. Naruto looked at her in confusion. "You missed your target." That said, Hinata leaned in and kissed Naruto square on the lips. Naruto was surprised, but he returned the kiss readily.

So it was that a certain scarred Chunin entered his classroom to find the shyest girl in his class and his favorite blond sharing a surprisingly passionate kiss.

Not believing his eyes, Iruka formed the "ram" hand sign and yelled, "RELEASE!" To his surprise, nothing changed. Naruto and Hinata were still kissing, and, oddly, neither seemed to have even heard him yell.

In the end, it was the need for air that forced the two youngsters apart. Hinata, upon opening her eyes, realized they weren't alone. "Oh, Iruka-sensei!" she said. Said Chunin was standing with his hands on his hips and trying to glare at Naruto in particular. He was failing at this attempt, however, as he was unable to keep back a smile as his eyes glinted with mischief.

"So, Naruto and Hinata, huh?" he said teasingly. Both mentioned students blushed deeply. "Tell me, you two, when did this happen?"

Hinata looked at Iruka and, seeing he wasn't trying to get them in trouble, smiled. "If you mean when did we kiss," she started. "About five minutes ago. If you mean when did we get together, we haven't officially. If you mean when did we start talking and liking one another, oh, about thirty hours ago."

Iruka was surprised both that Hinata didn't stutter while saying that and that she didn't blush even once either. He smiled at his students, then looked at his files on each of them. He was hoping to find that the two were compatible and likely to end up on a team together. He sighed when he saw that the kunoichi most likely to be with Naruto was Sakura.

Hinata looked like she remembered something just then. "Oh, Iruka-sensei?" she said. Iruka looked at her and nodded. "I would like to request a specific sparring opponent for the final exams." Iruka looked a little surprised, but nodded again. "I would like to go against Sakura."

Iruka looked shocked by this. "I take it you realize what it will mean if you beat her," he said cautiously.

Hinata nodded and rested a hand on Naruto's arm. "Yes, Iruka-sensei, I know," she said, a small smile on her face.

Iruka pondered this. "All right, I think I can set it up so you spar with Sakura," he said after a moment. "Tell me, though, how did you know about that?"

Hinata chuckled. "It's always been custom to put the best student and the worst student together, and the kunoichi paired with them is almost always either the best one overall or the one with the best chakra control," she said. "Obviously, Sakura has me beat in control, though not by much, so if I want to be on that team, I have to be better than her overall." _"And I will be on that team,"_ she finished to herself.

Iruka nodded; even though he realized Hinata hadn't really answered his question, he couldn't deny what she said. As a result, Iruka, though he hated it, was forced to simply accept what Hinata had said and allow his student to keep her secret. Hinata just smiled and settled into her seat and got ready to listen to another Iruka lecture.

xxxxxx

Naruto and Hinata left the classroom together again. "Ugh, how do you do that?" Naruto asked suddenly.

Hinata jumped slightly; she'd been lost in thought until Naruto spoke. "Do what, Naruto?" she asked, a slight blush coloring her cheeks.

"Concentrate on Iruka-sensei's lectures that long! I get a headache if I try, but you don't seem to have any trouble doing it at all."

"Oh, that. Well, I've been trained since I was little to sit still and pay attention for a long time, so it's not that hard for me anymore," Hinata said quietly, shrugging. "It doesn't really matter that much anyway, does it? I mean, we only have, what, three days left of class?"

Naruto sighed. It annoyed him to think that he had such a glaring lack, and now it was too late to do anything about it. "I guess you're right," he said, his eyes looking to the ground.

Hinata recognized the motion. She did the same thing when she wanted to hide something. "Naruto, what's wrong?" she asked, determined not to let him sink into depression.

"Oh, nothing," he said, looking at her again. "I just feel stupid that I have such a glaring problem, and there's nothing I can do about it."

Hinata smiled. "Maybe I can help you," she said, her eyes glinting slightly. Naruto looked at her in confusion. "I told you I know how to concentrate really well. I can help you learn how after we graduate, especially if we're on a team together."

Naruto smiled. "Really? Thanks, Hinata, you're the best!" he said, his excitement coming back. Hinata blushed slightly at his comment. "Hinata..." Naruto started, then trailed off, blushing slightly himself.

"What is it, Naruto?" Hinata asked, smiling kindly.

"I...I hope...we get put on a team together," Naruto said.

Hinata froze. Her face closely resembled a setting sun it was so red. "M-Me, t-too, N-Naruto," she stammered. _"In fact, I'm going to make sure we _are_ on the same team," _she thought to herself. Naruto smiled.

"Oh, Hinata?" Naruto said then. Hinata looked up at him, her eyes questioning. Naruto looked around to make sure they were alone; neither had been paying attention, but somehow they had ended up at the same training ground where Hinata had shown Naruto the Shadow Clone Jutsu. "I had something I wanted to show you."

"Oh? Did you learn a new jutsu or something?" Hinata asked, trying not to giggle at the idea of Naruto coming up with a new jutsu at his current age.

"Well, sort of," Naruto said. "I had a really weird dream last night. In the dream, I saw an older version of myself doing this jutsu, so, when I woke up this morning, I tried what I was doing in the dream...and it worked!"

"Oh? What were you doing?" Hinata asked.

Naruto created a Shadow Clone. Hinata watched in amazement as Naruto held out one hand and the clone began to form an orb of chakra in the original's hand. The clone dispelled, leaving Naruto standing there with a swirling orb of chakra in his hand and a confused look on his face.

"Th-The R-R-Rasengan!" Hinata stammered out, her amazement clear.

Naruto looked even more confused. "Rasengan? Is that what this is?" he asked.

Hinata nodded. "Yes, Naruto, that's the Rasengan. It's an S-rank ninjutsu!"

It was then that Naruto did something he had never done before in his life. He fainted.

Naruto opened his eyes slowly. The first thing he saw was a pair of worried lavender eyes. He closed his eyes a moment and shook his head to clear it a little. Upon reopening his eyes, he saw that the worried eyes looking at him belonged to Hinata. Naruto smiled. _"She really is pretty," _Naruto thought. _"I'm glad I finally noticed her."_

Hinata noticed the tender look in Naruto's eyes as he looked at her and blushed. "Are you all right, Naruto?" she asked.

Naruto grinned his famous foxy grin. "Yep, I'm fine," he said, jumping to his feet to prove it. "Hey, Hinata, that thing we did...in class this morning?"

Hinata stiffened. She realized in an instant he was talking about their kiss. "What about it, Naruto?" she asked, stalling for time to think, irrationally afraid he'd say it was a mistake.

"Um...could we...do that again sometime?" he asked, blushing deeply. Hinata gasped. She hadn't been expecting _that_. "Or not. It's all right. I'm sorry for asking." Hinata looked at Naruto and saw he looked like he was afraid he had upset her.

Hinata got a sudden burst of courage and approached Naruto. She cupped his face in her hands. "Naruto, it's fine, I was just surprised," she said, smiling softly. "And actually, you can kiss me any time you want to, but only on one condition." Naruto looked confused. Hinata giggled. This was most unusual, but it somehow seemed to be perfectly natural for them. "You can kiss me any time you want, but only if you're my boyfriend and I'm your girlfriend."

Naruto gasped. "Are you...asking me out, Hinata?" he asked her. Hinata blushed but nodded, still smiling. "All right then. I'll be your boyfriend if you'll be my girlfriend."

Hinata giggled. "I'd love nothing more than that, Naruto." She looked up at the sky and was surprised at how late it was getting. "Oh! We need to get going or we'll be late for dinner!" With that, the two took off at a run toward Hinata's home and dinner with her father.

xxxxxx

Moving her fire red hair out of her face, the young kunoichi-to-be groaned slightly. Their graduation test was coming up in a few days, and she just didn't feel like she was going to be much good as a ninja. As she was thinking about this, one of her instructors, a beautiful green-eyed kunoichi of Chunin rank, approached her.

"Hey, would you like to train to be a medical ninja?" she asked. The young woman looked up in surprise. "I've noticed you have exceptional chakra control and sensing abilities, and I think you would make an excellent medical ninja," the instructor explained.

The redhead gave a small smile and nodded. Maybe _that_ would help her to be of some use to her future team. Who knows, maybe this whole ninja thing would turn out right after all.


	3. Intentions of the Intended

Chapter 3

Hinata took a deep breath as she faced her opponent. The girl's long pink hair always did look like such an eyesore to Hinata, and even now she wondered what Sakura planned to do with it when she was out on missions. Shaking her head at herself, Hinata reminded herself that she had to focus. She _had_ to win this fight. Her entire future depended on it. Her father had revealed _that_ at the dinner two nights ago.

Flashback

_Hinata looked at her father, trying to find the deception in his face. To her horror, it wasn't there. Looking at the paper in her hands, she gave a mighty shudder, thinking for once she was glad she'd never know how things would have turned out in that _other_ timeline._

_The paper, which her father had handed to her just after dinner was cleared away, was a marriage contract. It stated, in no uncertain terms, that Naruto was to marry the top kunoichi of his graduating class. _"That was Sakura, that other time,"_ she thought. _"I really never had a chance, did I?"

"_Your parents both said you deserved the best, Naruto," Hiashi stated. "I, of course, just assumed Hinata here would be the top kunoichi of your year, so I didn't really have any objection to it. Your parents were such good friends to both Hinata's mother and me. I am greatly chagrined to say that as of right now, Hinata isn't the one that that contract would bind to you."_

_It was then that Hinata got a bit of a surprise. Naruto gave Hiashi a glare and calmly stated, "I don't care what that piece of paper says, sir, if I decide I want to marry Hinata, then I'll marry Hinata, and no piece of paper is going to stop me."_

_Hinata gasped and blushed deeply at his words, then had to force herself to remain conscious as her father responded, with a small smile, "I see. I'm glad to hear you say that. It would make me proud to see you wed to my daughter some day, young man."_

Flashback End

Hinata sighed again. Yes, she would win this fight, she would be the top kunoichi of the year, she would be on Naruto's team, and, damn it, she _would_ marry him some day! She turned her eyes to Sakura, who was watching her carefully. Both girls made the sign for combat, Iruka called for the match to begin, and the two kunoichi charged at one another.

Naruto watched as Hinata and Sakura's trajectories collided. Hinata dodged Sakura's rather clumsy punch and attempted a few Gentle Fist strikes to her right arm and leg. Sakura dodged, but only just. Hinata's attacks and dodges made Naruto feel like he was watching the indigo-haired girl do a dance, while Sakura looked like a lumbering elephant by comparison. Sighing, he asked himself, _"Did I really think Sakura was pretty? What the hell was I thinking?"_

Then he remembered the dinner and what Hiashi had sprung on him after Hinata had left the table. Just thinking about it made him blush.

Flashback

_Hiashi smiled at Naruto after dismissing Hinata from the table. Turning to Neji, who was still there, he nodded once. Neji rose and closed and locked the doors to the dining room. As he locked the last one, Neji made a single hand sign. Naruto realized after a moment that Neji had activated a silencer seal, meaning that no sound from within the dining room would escape it. Meaning, to Naruto's mind, that no matter how loud he screamed, no help would be coming. He gulped deeply._

_Neji returned to his seat at the table. Hiashi then turned to Naruto and gave him a Hyuga Glare. "So, Naruto, you seem to find Hinata attractive, and you're spending a lot of time with her of late," he said, his voice low, even, almost cold._

_Naruto gulped, his fear rising again. "Y-Yes, sir," he said. Hiashi looked at Neji, who turned a second Hyuga Glare on the blond. Hiashi rose and paced back and forth behind his chair at the head of the table, while Neji held Naruto in place with his eyes._

"_Have you ever had a girlfriend, Naruto?" Hiashi asked. Naruto shook his head, almost afraid to speak now. "And have the teachers at the Academy taught you anything about...the way men and women interact with one another?" Naruto shook his head again, a little confused now as to what Hiashi was trying to say. Hiashi sighed. "Then I guess it falls to me."_

_Neji spoke, for the first time all night. "Naruto, are you aware of how long Hinata has been watching you, wanting to be with you?" Naruto looked at Neji, surprised the boy had spoken, raised an eyebrow, thought a moment, then shook his head for a third time. Neji sighed. "She's been watching you for at least three years now, Naruto, ever since you saved her from those bullies."_

_Naruto was stunned by this. _"Three years? She's...wait...bullies?"_ he thought. Then he remembered. _"That...was Hinata?!"_ He sighed. It made sense, really. The girl did look like Hinata, now that he thought about it. He kicked himself mentally for never realizing before that that girl had been her._

_Apparently satisfied with Naruto's reaction to this revelation, Hiashi spoke again. "Naruto, I need your word on something," he said. Naruto looked at the man and came to attention...well, as much so as he could while sitting in a chair anyway. "If you get Hinata pregnant, you have to promise me you'll take care of her and your child." Naruto fainted._

_When Naruto came to, it was to find, to his shock, that he was laying on a couch and Hiashi and Neji were watching over him. "What happened?" he asked drowsily. Neji and Hiashi shared a look and chuckled. "What?"_

_Neji was the one to answer. "When Uncle asked for your word that you would take care of Hinata and any child you may have with her, you fainted," he said, his mouth seemingly rebelling against him as he tried not to smile._

_Naruto took a deep breath. "Why would you ask me for my word on that, Lord Hiashi?" he asked._

"_I want to know that my daughter and my grandchildren will be well taken care of," he said, as if it was obvious; to him, it was. "Besides, contract or no contract, I will not allow my daughter to marry a man who is unworthy of her!"_

_Naruto smiled, blushed, then simply stated, "Lord Hiashi, I will prove myself to be worthy of your daughter, you have my word on that."_

_Hiashi chuckled. "In that case, I guess I better explain how the process works..." he said. Naruto looked confused. "The process of making children, I mean. Obviously, the Academy teachers haven't taught you, and I will not have you around my daughter without having a full understanding of how it works so you know what you are _not_ to do with her until or unless you are married to her."_

Flashback End

The next half an hour was half an hour Naruto would much rather forget forever. While extremely informative, getting The Talk from your prospective girlfriend's father...well, it was embarrassing, to say the very least. Just thinking of it made Naruto blush. Then, he returned his focus to the fight between Hinata and Sakura. Hinata was making Sakura look like a fool, but, at the same time, she was making Sakura show just how good she _could_ be. Naruto smiled. "Nice work, Hinata," he said quietly. Having trained with Hinata a lot the last few days, Naruto was very much aware of what the dark-haired girl was doing: she was making Sakura work her tail off while Hinata herself was doing next to nothing. "And...now," he said softly.

Just as Naruto said this, Hinata moved. Sakura, worn out from trying for the last five minutes to land a hit on Hinata, couldn't move fast enough and took the full brunt of Hinata's attack: Hinata struck Sakura's shoulders, then her hips, then her elbows, then her knees, and finally her wrists. Sakura fell to the ground like a puppet whose strings had just been cut. Iruka's call of "Winner, Hinata Hyuga!" was completely redundant.

Hinata made her way out of the practice ring and stood beside Naruto. Naruto gave her a grin and a thumbs up. Hinata blinked. She could have _sworn_ she just saw his teeth _sparkle_ in the sunlight! "Um, Naruto?" she began slowly. Naruto's grin faded, but he nodded. "You've been hanging around Guy-sensei and Lee, haven't you?" Hinata's voice was low, calm, and Naruto found himself hearing her father in it. He gulped and nodded. Hinata looked into his eyes, her own cold. "You're not planning on starting to wear one of those ridiculous jumpsuits of theirs, are you?" Naruto shrugged a little; he _had_ been thinking of doing that; those jumpsuits were comfortable! "Well, better think twice about that. If you start wearing one, I might get...distracted by your new look and...lose my concentration and hit you somewhere...extremely painful."

Naruto thought a moment, then gasped and clenched his legs together tighter. "We wouldn't want that," he said, mostly to himself. Then he thought about the ramifications of Hinata's threat. He leaned down and whispered into her ear. "You wouldn't do that, Hinata," he said. Hinata looked at him, her face asking how he was so sure. "You want them too much to take them away from me." Hinata blushed, infinitely grateful he'd been whispering. He wasn't done, though. He continued, "And you know as well as I do that if we're going to have kids some day, I'll need them."

Hinata thought about what he'd just said, knowing full well that he knew what he was insinuating, got a sudden picture of them...doing it and fell to the ground, unconscious. Naruto chuckled a bit as he thought of how cute Hinata was when she did that. Then, looking at her a bit closer, Naruto realized Hinata had a slight nosebleed. It wasn't long before Naruto was on the ground beside Hinata, though he wasn't unconscious. He was laughing.

xxxxxx

Hinata awoke slowly, her mind still reeling from what Naruto had said before she passed out. Opening her eyes and looking around, she almost fainted again. Naruto's blue eyes were looking straight into Hinata's pale lavender orbs as she slowly opened them. The blond had laid down beside Hinata while she slept and curled around her protectively. When she awoke, he was running his fingers lovingly through her hair and smiling at her. Hinata blushed at the intimate position, but she wasn't about to move and break it. "Hey, beautiful," Naruto whispered. Hinata blushed deeper, fighting to remain conscious for the second time since she awoke.

Hinata reached up slowly and curled her fingers into Naruto's hair. Blushing deeper than before, she began to massage his scalp gently. Shocking both herself and her boyfriend, she responded softly, "How can you say something like that when it is so clearly you who is beautiful?" Naruto didn't answer; instead, he moved his hand from her hair down to her face and gently cupped her cheek. As he watched, Hinata's blush deepened yet again, surprising him, but the girl smiled up at him. Leaning down, Naruto kissed her cheek, then her forehead, then her other cheek, then, smiling playfully, her nose. Hinata giggled. "We're going to _have_ to work on your aim," she said playfully, then pulled Naruto to her and met his lips with her own. Naruto complied willingly, and when their lips met, both felt the heat of the kiss searing their souls.

Naruto pulled Hinata to him, his arms around her waist, rubbing her back lovingly, as he kissed her deeply. Hinata responded by putting her slender arms around his neck and entwining her fingers in his hair. Naruto would have objected if anyone else did that; he didn't like his hair being touched, but, for some reason, Hinata doing it was nice. The two separated for a split second, breathed, tasting one another's breath as they did so, then kissed again. _"I was going to see if we could get some training in when she woke up, but this is so much nicer than training,"_ Naruto thought to himself before giving himself over to the powerful love he felt in the kiss Hinata was bestowing upon him.

After what felt like years, yet was an eternity too short, the two separated. Naruto looked into Hinata's eyes and smiled. Hinata, blushing from excitement now, smiled back. Naruto chuckled a little, then whispered, "Was that good enough aim for you?"

Hinata smiled, then teased, "It would be, if it hadn't been _my _aim." She poked Naruto in the stomach as she said this.

Naruto responded by leaning down and giving her a quick peck on the lips. "There, that time it was mine," he said, poking her stomach in return. Hinata smiled, then suddenly blushed and put a finger in front of her lips as she realized something. Naruto looked at her. "What is it, Hinata?"

"Naruto, we're...flirting," she said, her voice shyer than Naruto had heard it be in weeks. He thought about what she'd said, then smiled.

"Well, yeah, we're flirting," he said, poking her stomach playfully again. Hinata pouted, which Naruto just had to chuckle at; it was just too cute for words. "We're kind of allowed to do that, you know. I mean, we _are_ a couple after all."

Hinata smiled so wide Naruto had a gut feeling it had to hurt. "Yeah, you're right. We are a couple," she said, as if affirming it to herself. She poked him again, in the side this time, and so began a poke war of epic proportions. Naruto would roll somewhat to avoid her pokes and poke her in the side, then Hinata would twist herself to avoid his poke and poke him in the chest. It didn't take long for the two to collapse into giggles and one another's arms.

Naruto smiled at his girlfriend, who was now laying mostly on top of him and wrapped in his arms. "What am I gonna do with you?" he asked her, smiling.

Hinata giggled cutely. "Love me, I hope," she said back.

Naruto blushed slightly as he answered, "I do." Hinata, sure she'd heard him wrong, gasped and looked at him. Naruto, still blushing, smiled and said again, "I do love you."

Hinata leaned down and kissed Naruto deeply, then smiled at him. "I love you, too, Naruto," she said simply. Naruto smiled, then claimed Hinata's lips with his own again, wrapping her in his arms tightly as he kissed her. For the first time in his life, Konoha's pariah felt safe, protected, and truly loved. Hinata, for her part, had never been happier; rather than holding in her feelings for Naruto for so many years, she had now confessed her love and earned the blond's love in return, and they weren't even out of the Academy yet! What's more, this time, she just knew they were going to be on a team together! _"Thank you, Masashi,"_ she thought. _"Thank you for everything."_

xxxxxx

In the Hidden Sand Village, Masashi let loose a violent sneeze, causing a young brunette to trip forward and slam headlong into a small red-headed boy, causing both to fall to the ground. The redhead gasped as the air was forced from his lungs as his body was squashed between the large gourd on his back and the brunette's body.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" the brunette, Matsuri, said quickly. She got up and held out a hand. The redhead, Gaara, slowly took her hand, and Matsuri helped him to his feet. Matsuri looked up at the boy she had accidentally bumped into. His pale, black-rimmed eyes looked into hers, fear evident in his gaze. "What's your name?"

"I am Gaara," he answered, his voice rough, harsh. "And who are you?"

"I'm Matsuri," she told him. She recognized his name, but she saw nothing dangerous about the boy before her, despite what everyone said. "Would you like to be my friend, Gaara?"

Gaara was stunned. This girl, who he had to admit was very pretty, was asking to be his friend, even knowing who he was. "I would like that very much, Matsuri," he answered.

Masashi smiled as he left the two to themselves. _"Sometimes it's the accidents in life that really make it worth living,"_ he thought as he left the Sand Village behind. He had one more stop to make before he could return to the Leaf Village to see how his heroine was doing, and he was anxious to get back there; he didn't want to admit it, but he missed Hinata.

xxxxxx

Karin sighed as she looked over her handiwork. As her flame-red hair fell over her eyes, obscuring her work, she irritably flipped it out of the way and behind her ear. Looking over her patient again, she smiled and nodded, satisfied; her first human patient was looking good and would likely be fully recovered and ready for active duty again within a few days. "Good," her instructor said from across the room. "I was right about you, Karin, you are turning out to be quite the medical prodigy. I'm glad you decided to sign up for this course."

Karin just smiled. "So am I," she said. She turned her smile on her patient. "So am I."


	4. Secrets Revealed

Chapter 4

Masashi smiled as he looked up at the gate to the Hidden Leaf Village. He really hated to admit it, but he'd missed this place. The huge stone faces of the four Hokage looked down at him, stern gazes eternally present. Chuckling, he commented to himself, "Naruto's won't be so stern, I bet."

Within moments, the man was deep inside the village, no one having noticed him. Making his way silently into the Academy, he slipped into Iruka's classroom and began sifting through the class list, looking to see who would be on teams with whom. He smiled when he saw that the "Rookie of the Year" was still listed as Sasuke but that Hinata was technically the top of the class now. He also noticed after a moment that Naruto was no longer quite the dead last. Apparently Hinata's training with the boy had benefited him as well. Looking closer, Masashi realized what this meant. The man chuckled, then laughed. Soon, he was rolling around on the floor, laughing uproariously. When he heard the classroom door open suddenly, he vanished as if he had never been there. _"They're going to _love_ that one,"_ he thought to himself as he disappeared.

Iruka looked around his empty classroom. "I could have sworn I heard something in here," he muttered to himself. Shrugging, he sat down and began grading papers, as was his habit in the hour or so before class would begin. He smiled proudly when he realized that Naruto was now in the middle of the class, based on the most recent test scores, and Hinata was now the top of the class. He chuckled as he realized exactly who would most likely end up being their third teammate. Not that he had any complaints about it; that team would work just fine. Their sensei-to-be, Kakashi, would probably love it, too, even though he'd act like he didn't, of course.

Iruka shook his head and chuckled as he finished grading the last paper. Setting them aside, he got himself ready for class to begin. He didn't have long to wait; Naruto and Hinata arrived together mere moments after Iruka had finished grading. "Hey, you two," he greeted. Naruto and Hinata gave him a small smile. "I just got done with your tests." This made their ears perk up. "Hinata, with your performance in the ring the other day and this test, you are now the #1 student of this year."

Naruto chuckled. "So, I guess Sasuke isn't Rookie of the Year anymore, huh, Iruka-sensei?" he asked.

Iruka shook his head. "No, he is, he's still the best _male_ ninja. I know it sounds mean, but kunoichi are never listed as Rookie of the Year. On the other hand, though, Naruto, you're no longer dead last, either. You moved up quite a few spots after this test. I'm proud of you, Naruto," he said.

Naruto whooped. "I keep telling you, Iruka-sensei, one day I'm going to be Hokage! Just look how awesome I am now!" he told the teacher, who just chuckled and shook his head at the blond's antics.

Iruka would have continued the conversation with them, but it was at that moment that the rest of the class began to arrive. When Sasuke came in and saw Naruto and Hinata already there, he snorted and said arrogantly, "Why do you even bother coming to class? You're a failure even to your clan," he said to Hinata, then turned to Naruto and added, "and you're a nobody who's always going to be dead last."

Naruto clenched his fists and would have lunged at Sasuke, but Iruka spoke up before he had the chance. "You better watch it, Sasuke," he said. Sasuke looked at Iruka, one eyebrow raised curiously. "Naruto isn't dead last anymore, he hasn't been for some time now actually, and Hinata is now the #1 student of this year. Yes, that's right Sasuke, she's even above _you._ Incidentally, you're not even #2, you're #3, Ino has been above you all year because your teamwork scores are so abysmal. So I'd watch what you say to those two. They might just deck you, and I'm not going to do a single thing to stop them from doing it; after that comment, you deserve it." His piece said, Iruka simply sat down behind his desk and gave a small smile to Naruto and Hinata, who smiled back gratefully.

It took a few minutes, but eventually the entire class was there. Iruka rose and paced a bit, then spoke to them all. "Today, you take your final test to become Genin," he began. "I want you all to know, no matter how you do today, I am proud of all of you. I look forward to working with each and every one of you as you further your ninja careers." That said, the Chunin passed out the written portion of the final exam to his students.

xxxxxx

Naruto sighed deeply. He'd always hated written tests, but at least that one had gone fairly smoothly. Now he just had the jutsu test to pass, and he'd be good to go. Since Hinata had told him the Shadow Clone Jutsu would work in that to make up for his inability to do the Clone Jutsu, he wasn't worried at all about passing.

Iruka smiled at his class. "You've all done well so far. I will now call each of you to the room next door for the ninjutsu portion of your final test." That said, he called the first student and exited the room. Naruto took the opportunity to talk to Hinata, Sakura and Ino tried vainly to get Sasuke to talk to them, Kiba and Shino rolled their eyes at the fangirls' antics, and Shikamaru muttered about everything being such a drag and promptly fell asleep.

As time passed, everyone got called into the next room, and each student returned briefly to tell the next person to go for their turn then left. Some proudly wore their headbands, some didn't seem to have one. Naruto groaned. "It looks like this test really is tough. I was so sure before, but what if I fail?" he asked.

Hinata rested a hand on his shoulder. "You've got this, Naruto," she told him. "Don't worry, you'll do fine."

Naruto rested a hand on Hinata's and smiled at the girl. "Thanks, Hinata," he said quietly. "I'm glad you've got my back." Just then, Hinata was called. A few minutes later, she returned, a Leaf headband hanging from her neck and a huge grin on her face. After telling the next student to go, Hinata went to Naruto, and the two embraced in celebration.

Hinata giggled, blushing lightly. "Just make sure you pass, too, Naruto," she said.

Naruto smiled back. "There's no way the future Hokage is going to fail at this! Believe it!" he said confidently. Hinata giggled, and the blond swung her around in a circle, both laughing happily.

Sasuke, watching them, shook his head. _"What a waste of time,"_ he thought to himself.

Soon enough, Naruto's turn came. Making his way to the testing room, Naruto smiled at Iruka and cast a distrustful look on Mizuki. The silver-haired Chunin met his gaze with a level stare. "All right, Naruto," Iruka spoke up after a moment. "Do a transformation, substitute with something, and create at least three clones, and you pass."

Naruto panicked. This wasn't going to go well. "Iruka-sensei, can I talk to you in private a moment?" he asked.

Iruka nodded, and Mizuki, a scowl on his face, left the room. Iruka sighed. "What do you need, Naruto?" he asked somewhat impatiently.

"I had to show you this in private, I couldn't let Mizuki see," Naruto said. Taking a deep breath, the blond formed the cross hand sign Hinata had shown him. "Shadow Clone Jutsu," he said softly. Three perfect Shadow Clones popped into existence around him. Iruka nodded. Naruto dispelled the jutsu, then transformed into a perfect copy of Mizuki. Iruka nodded again. Turning back into himself, Naruto substituted with Mizuki, who was still waiting outside the room at the time.

Iruka shook his head. "That was supposed to be a substitution, not another transformation, Naruto," he said after a second.

Naruto spoke as he opened the door to the classroom. "But I did do a substitution!" he whined. Iruka looked at the blond in surprise.

"Indeed you did, Naruto," Iruka said, chuckling softly at the annoyed look on Mizuki's face. "My apologies." Naruto nodded. Iruka then said, "You've done well, Naruto. It is my pleasure to present you with this." He held out a Leaf headband to the blond, who took it and immediately tied it around his forehead after removing the goggles he had taken to wearing there. "Once everyone else is done, I'll take you and Hinata out for ramen to celebrate!" Iruka promised Naruto. The blond nodded and raced from the room, a happy grin on his face.

Naruto made it back to the classroom and was sitting with Hinata to wait for the rest of the class to finish the exam when it happened. He got a sudden flash of pain in his head and a brief vision of a much older Hinata standing between him and a man with rods piercing his face. Naruto himself was laying on the ground for some reason he couldn't fathom. He heard her say something, but it was garbled to his ears. Closing his eyes briefly, Naruto shook his head, and the vision faded. "That was weird," he said, mostly to himself.

"What happened, Naruto?" Hinata asked, concerned. Naruto explained briefly what he'd seen. Hinata gasped. _"That was when...I stepped in and tried to save him from Pain,"_ she thought to herself. _"But why did Naruto just...?"_ It made no sense to her, so she decided to forget about it for now. She could tell something weird was going on, but she had no idea what it was.

Naruto shook his head again and put the vision from his mind. He couldn't help thinking, though, _"She really would do that, wouldn't she? Step in like that to save me, risk her life for me like that. She really would."_ Smiling, he rested a hand on Hinata's shoulder. Hinata looked at him curiously. "Nothing," he said to her questioning look. "I'm just thinking. But come on, let's head outside to wait for Iruka-sensei." Hinata looked at him questioningly. "He's taking us out for ramen to celebrate our graduation," he explained. Hinata nodded, and the two made their way outside. Naruto let Hinata sit on his swing, while the blond himself paced restlessly.

"Are you okay, Naruto?" Hinata asked after a few minutes. He looked at her and raised an eyebrow. Hinata blushed then explained, "You're pacing around like you're nervous or something."

Naruto sighed. "You caught me," he said, smiling a little. "I'm just thinking about that...I don't know, that thing I told you I saw in there." Here, he gestured at the Academy building. "I don't know quite what to make of it."

Hinata took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. _"Oh, well, I knew I'd have to tell him eventually. I just didn't think it'd be so soon!"_ she thought to herself. She sighed again. _"Better to get it out in the open sooner rather than later, though, I guess."_ Turning to Naruto, she told him, "I know what it was you saw, Naruto. I don't have time to explain right this second, but after lunch, we'll go somewhere where we can talk alone, and I'll explain everything. I promise, okay?"

Naruto gave a small smile. "Sure thing, Hinata," he told her. Resting a hand on her shoulder, he added softly, "And don't worry, I'm sure whatever it is, it's nothing bad. And even if it is, it won't change my opinion of you, I'm sure."

Hinata rested her own hand on top of Naruto's on her shoulder. "I hope you're right, Naruto," she answered, her voice low. "I hope you're right." Naruto smiled and rose. As he turned from Hinata, both new graduates saw Iruka coming toward them.

"Naruto, Hinata," he said as he got up to them. He smiled at the young couple. "I'm so proud of you two. Come on, let's celebrate!" Naruto and Hinata both cheered enthusiastically, and the trio made its way into the village, Naruto and Hinata's hands linked to one another. Iruka had to smile as he watched them. _"I'm glad they're going to be on a team together,"_ he thought to himself.

The trio arrived shortly at the ramen shop and took seats on three adjacent stools. Naruto was in the middle, his hand still linked with Hinata's. Hinata was on Naruto's left, and Iruka was on his right. The elderly ramen shop owner/chef turned as he heard the three arrive. "Well, well, Naruto, what have we here?" he asked. He gave a confidential wink to Iruka to let the teacher know he meant no harm. Iruka gave the man a small smile in return as Naruto and Hinata blushed. Teuchi chuckled. "Hey, Ayame!" he called out. Ayame poked her head around the corner and looked at her father questioningly. "Come out here, you gotta see this!"

Ayame came out and stared in awe at the blushing Naruto and Hinata. "Okay, Dad, what did you do?" she asked. "I never thought I'd see the day when _Naruto_ would blush like that!"

Teuchi grinned mischievously. "All I did was ask him what this is about," he said, gesturing at the blond and his female companion. "They both started blushing instantly."

Ayame giggled then turned to Naruto. "So, Naruto, who's your girlfriend?" she asked.

Naruto's blush intensified, much to Ayame and Teuchi's amusement. After taking a deep breath, he looked up at them and told them, "This is Hinata. And yes, she is my girlfriend."

Teuchi gasped. He'd only been teasing them, he hadn't thought they were actually together. Ayame, on the other hand, squealed loudly. "Oh, my gosh! You two are so cute together! Don't you think so, Dad?" she gushed. Naruto and Hinata returned to blushing deeply. They weren't ashamed of each other or anything, but Ayame's gushing was embarrassing them both deeply.

Teuchi chuckled, then got back to business. "So, what can we get for you three?" he asked. Ayame huffed a bit in exasperation at her father's total lack of sense of the romantic. In short order, the three ninja had made their respective requests for different types of ramen and been served. That done, the chef and his daughter left the three to their own devices, knowing Naruto in particular wouldn't hesitate to call to them if they needed anything.

Iruka turned to Naruto, who already had a mouthful of noodles, and chuckled slightly. "So you two are a couple now, huh?" he asked. Naruto choked on his ramen, and Hinata had to smack him on the back to help him clear his throat. Iruka was chuckling as he watched the two. "I'll take that as a yes. When were you going to tell me, Naruto?"

Naruto blushed slightly and looked at Iruka apologetically. "I would have told you, Iruka-sensei!" he insisted. "It only happened recently, and it hadn't come up yet. I promise, I really was going to tell you!"

Iruka chuckled and waved Naruto off. "I'm not upset, Naruto," he said. "I was just messing with you. Seriously, though, I'm happy for you two."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks, Iruka-sensei!" he said back. Turning to Hinata, he added, "Did you hear that, Hinata?"

Hinata blushed slightly and nodded. "Yeah, I heard," she said.

Iruka could tell from her voice that Hinata wasn't really focusing on the conversation between him and Naruto. "Naruto, let's let Hinata be," he said. "I think she has something on her mind, and I don't think we're helping her much." Hinata, hearing him, turned a grateful look upon their teacher. Iruka just nodded to her.

Naruto realized Iruka was right, Hinata did seem distracted. "Yeah, you're right, Iruka-sensei," he said back. That said, the three settled into a companionable silence and finished their meal. As they were leaving, Naruto smiled up at his old teacher. "Thanks, Iruka-sensei," he said.

Iruka smiled. "It was my pleasure, you two," he said back.

Hinata smiled and bowed to the man. "Thank you for treating me, Iruka-sensei," she said politely. "Now, if you'll excuse us, Naruto and I have some things to discuss in private." Iruka nodded and smiled at the two of them, then made his way away from them. He had no idea his life would be in extreme danger within minutes.

Naruto turned toward Hinata. "Are you sure about this, Hinata?" he asked her. Hinata took a deep breath, then nodded. "All right, then. What's up?"

Hinata shook her head. "Not here," she said. "Come on, let's go somewhere where we can talk alone."

Within a few minutes, the young couple had arrived at one of the training grounds scattered around the village. As they entered the ground, Hinata saw Naruto freeze. "Masashi?" she asked after a second, wondering even as she did how she knew that name. The man in question stepped out of the trees nearby. "What's going on?"

Masashi smiled at Hinata. "You're going to tell Naruto?" he asked her. Hinata nodded. Masashi nodded. "I approve." Stepping forward, he touched a single finger to her forehead. Hinata got a sudden vision of the man in front of her beating Pain into the ground. Shaking her head, she looked around, realizing Masashi was gone, but now she remembered how she'd been sent back in time.

Naruto came up to her. "You okay, Hinata?" he asked.

Hinata nodded. "I'm fine. Let's sit down, Naruto," she said, gesturing to the training posts nearby. The two sat down, facing one another, each leaning against a post. Naruto gave an encouraging smile to his girlfriend, who smiled in return. "Well, I guess there's no way to break this to you easily, so I'll just say it. I'm from the future," Hinata said.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, half-expecting Hinata to burst into laughter at any moment. "From the future?" he asked. Hinata nodded, hoping he'd believe her. Naruto thought back to the day they'd first really talked. "The day you approached me...that's when you came back, isn't it?" he asked after a moment.

Hinata nodded. "The vision you got...of me saving you...I died that day, but someone saved me. He sent me back here to give me a chance to change things. That's why I talked to you that day, I was determined to change things as soon as I could."

Naruto sighed. It made sense. "When did we get together...before?" he asked her.

Hinata shook her head. "We didn't. I never got up the nerve to approach you," she answered. Naruto buried his face in his hands. Hinata reached over and rested a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't blame yourself, Naruto. I never had the courage to tell you how I felt, I was too afraid of being rejected."

Naruto smiled up at her, his eyes sparkling slightly with unshed tears. He whispered, "I would never reject you, Hinata. Never." Then he leaned forward and planted his lips against Hinata's. Hinata responded willingly. This wasn't their first kiss, true, but this one was something special. It seared them to their souls and bonded them to one another in a way nothing else up till then had. In that one kiss, Naruto affirmed his trust in Hinata and told her that he believed her story about traveling in time. At the same time, each of them reaffirmed to the other and to themselves that they were precious to one another and safe together. It was a whole new experience for the young couple, and they both knew they would treasure this moment forever.

xxxxxx

As Naruto and Hinata were sitting at the training ground talking, Iruka was on his way home. He'd had a long, hard, but fulfilling day. He smiled as he thought back over the day; he'd found out his favorite student had a girlfriend now, he'd _finally_ seen the blond become a ninja, he'd had a good time with the young couple at lunch, and now he was headed home, happy but exhausted. _"Even the good days are tiring,"_ he thought to himself with a small chuckle.

Just as Iruka was about to open his door, he felt something impact with the back of his head hard and heard a voice he knew all too well. "It's about time someone wiped that smile off your face, Iruka," Mizuki said.

"_Mizuki? Why?"_ Iruka thought as his world went black.

xxxxxx

After Hinata's explanation had sunk in, Naruto and Hinata separated. They each made their way home; it had been a long day, and both of them just wanted to get home and go to bed. Upon arriving home, Naruto did exactly that. Laying there in bed, he thought about what Hinata had told him that day. He didn't know what to think about Hinata's story, but he knew he believed it. There was no question about that. With that final thought in mind, the blond closed his crystal blue eyes and fell asleep.

The next morning, the graduating class all gathered for Iruka's final speech as their sensei. Iruka, however, never showed up. Mizuki came in and read off the team assignments. Naruto noticed Hinata looked distinctly uneasy from the moment Mizuki showed up. "Team Seven," Mizuki read. "Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata Hyuga, and Shikamaru Nara. Your sensei will be Kakashi Hatake."

Hinata gasped. _"Shikamaru?!"_ she thought to herself. _"But...he's supposed to be with Ino and Choji, not Naruto and me! What in the world is going on here?!"_

Completely unaware of her shock, Mizuki continued to read. "Team Eight, Kiba Inuzuka, Sakura Haruno, and Sasuke Uchiha," he said. At the final name, Sakura cheered aloud. Naruto groaned slightly as her voice grated on his nerves. "Your sensei will be Kurenai Yuhi. And Team Ten," Mizuki continued as if Sakura had never made a sound. "Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi, and Shino Aburame. Your sensei will be Asuma Sarutobi." With that, Mizuki turned and left the classroom, not another word being said. Hinata was in a near panic by the time Mizuki left; every sense she had was _screaming_ that something wasn't right.

Ten minutes later, Teams Eight and Ten were gone, and only Naruto, Hinata, and Shikamaru were left in the room to wait for their sensei. Shikamaru took the opportunity and promptly fell asleep. Naruto and Hinata sat and talked together quietly for a while. It didn't take long for the young couple to get thoroughly bored. _"Was it always like this for Naruto before?"_ Hinata wondered. Naruto eventually got up and lodged an eraser between the door and its frame. "You really shouldn't do that, Naruto," she scolded half-heartedly. She really couldn't blame him, they had been waiting _way_ too long for Kakashi to get there.

Naruto shook his head. "That's what he gets for being late," he told her. "And if he keeps it up, I'll keep pranking him until he stops." Hinata giggled slightly, shaking her head at her boyfriend's antics. She had to admit, it would be rather funny if Kakashi actually got _hit_ by the eraser.

Another twenty minutes passed before the door slid open. By then, Naruto and Hinata were completely oblivious to everything but one another, as they had spent the last twenty minutes getting slowly closer to one another as they talked. Now, Hinata was sitting on Naruto's lap, arms and legs wrapped around him, and the two were engaged in a deep kiss.

Somewhere in the Village Hidden in the Sand, an old man with long white hair wearing a red coat shivered. "Something sexy is happening to a relative of mine," he said to himself. Then he groaned. "And I'm not there to watch!"

Completely unaware of the dismay they had caused the old man, Naruto and Hinata were drawn out of their own little world when each of them had a heavy hand land on one shoulder. The two pulled apart and looked up to find a man with a mask over his lower face, his headband over his left eye, and silver, gravity-defying hair looking down at them with amusement shining in his lone visible eye.

"Hi, there," he said to them. Hinata blushed a bit, and Naruto chuckled in embarrassment. "I take it it was you who rigged up that eraser?" the man asked Naruto. Naruto grinned and nodded proudly. Kakashi, for that is who the man was, sighed and shook his head. "Meet me on the roof," he said simply and vanished.

Moments later, Kakashi, Naruto, Hinata, and Shikamaru were all on the roof of the Academy. Shikamaru yawned. "Thanks for being so late," he said to Kakashi, who looked at him in surprise. "I had a nice nap while we were waiting."

Kakashi sweat-dropped. "Well, anyway, now that we're all here, let's introduce ourselves."

Shikamaru answered again. "This is such a drag. Why don't you introduce yourself first?" he said.

Kakashi looked surprised, or as surprised as a man with only one eye visible out of his whole face _could_ look anyway. "Me? I'm Kakashi Hatake. Things I like and things I hate...I don't feel like telling you that. Dreams for the future...never really thought about it. As for my hobbies...I have lots of hobbies."

Naruto sighed and rolled his eyes. "He told us nothing," he said. "Okay then, if that's how he wants to play it..." Naruto stood up and grinned evilly at the man in front of him. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki," he began. "Things I like and things I hate...me and you." He nodded decisively. "Dreams for the future...Hat. As for my hobbies...I walk the road of life." Kakashi looked at him in complete surprise and confusion; he had absolutely no idea what the kid was trying to say there. He chuckled; this team was going to be more fun than he thought!

Hinata rose next. "I'm Hinata Hyuga," she said. "Things I like and things I hate...nothing much. Dreams for the future...Head. As for my hobbies...pressing." She turned and grinned to Naruto; she had taken her cue from him, but now that she'd done it, that was actually kinda fun, being vague like that. Kakashi chuckled again. He had a better idea what Hinata had meant, but he still wasn't entirely sure. This team really was going to be fun!

Shikamaru spoke up last. "I'm Shikamaru Nara," he said. "So far, I like you, and it's too much of a drag to hate anything. Dreams are a pain, so I don't have any, and the only hobby I have is the least troublesome one of all: sleeping."

At this one, Kakashi just shook his head. "You three are certainly a unique bunch, aren't you?" he asked rhetorically. "Well, whatever. You all have one final test to take tomorrow. Meet me at the designated training ground at five o'clock, and bring your ninja gear."

"What kind of test, Sensei?" Naruto asked. Kakashi broke into laughs. Hinata looked at Naruto, confused. The blond growled a bit. "What's so funny about that?"

Kakashi calmed down a bit. "If I tell you, you're not going to like it," he said, his voice mocking. None of them seemed ready to move, so he decided to tell them. "All right, here's the deal, of the 27 graduates who came here, only nine will become full-fledged Genin. Basically, I'm giving you a make-it-or-break-it test, and the chance you'll fail is at _least_ 66%!"

Hinata was panicking. _"A test? Kurenai-sensei didn't do that with us! What is he talking about? Oh, no, what if we fail?! What if it's my fault?! Naruto would never forgive me, he'd never talk to me again!"_ With her mind whirling a million miles an hour, Hinata passed out. Naruto caught her and laid her gently on her back.

As the blond was standing up, a cloud of smoke appeared between him and Kakashi. The man who materialized out of the cloud went up to Kakashi and spoke softly to him for a moment, then turned to Naruto.

"Naruto Uzumaki?" he asked. Naruto nodded, his eyes curious. "You are under arrest for the assault and kidnapping of Chunin Iruka Umino."

A/N: Dun dun dun! Yeah, I know, I'm a jerk. It's been a while since I left you guys with a good cliffhanger. I'll try to update as soon as I can...I may be a jerk, but I'm not heartless.


	5. Team Seven Comes Together, Sorta

Chapter 5

Naruto looked at the Chunin in shock. "WHAT?!" he screamed out. "What are you talking about?! I would never do such a thing to Iruka-sensei! I didn't even know he'd been attacked!"

The Chunin was apparently taken aback by this. He stopped and pondered the boy's reaction a moment. It did seem rather implausible that a fresh Genin straight out of the Academy would have the _ability_ to kidnap a Chunin, never mind anything else. Plus, everything up till now indicated that the boy before him cared deeply for the Chunin in question. All the same, if what he'd heard was any indication...maybe it was true after all?

"I'm told you've learned a forbidden jutsu recently that no one can account for you knowing and that you have suddenly improved more than can be understood in the last week. Is this true?" the Chunin asked Naruto.

Naruto gasped. Hinata's help! He had improved more quickly than made sense, he supposed. And it was true he'd been told the Shadow Clones were a forbidden jutsu. "Yes, that's true," he said after a moment. "But I can account for how I learned the Shadow Clone Jutsu. I was taught it."

"By whom?" the now-confused Chunin asked in response.

Naruto shook his head. "That's a secret, and I'm not telling you."

Once again, the Chunin was taken aback by Naruto's answer. "In that case, you'll explain yourself to the Hokage!" he said, clearly annoyed.

Naruto mentally grinned. _"That's what I was hoping you'd say,"_ he thought to himself. "Lead on," he said. The Chunin turned and walked toward the Hokage Tower, Naruto following obediently.

Shikamaru stepped forward, placing himself beside his sensei. "Naruto would never attack Iruka-sensei," he said to Kakashi. "He's looked up to our instructor for years as a big brother of sorts. Even if he were capable of this, there's no way he'd do it."

Kakashi smiled at his student behind his mask. "I'm glad to hear you say that, Shikamaru," he said simply. "We should always stand by our comrades in their time of need."

Hinata woke up at that moment. Looking around, she asked, "Where's Naruto?"

Kakashi turned to her and said, "He was arrested for assaulting and kidnapping your former sensei."

Hinata bolted upright, her face angry. "NO! There's no way he'd ever do that!" she yelled out.

Kakashi eye-smiled at the two members of his team who were there. "It seems you two are going to be great teammates for Naruto," he said. "Would you both break the rules to help Naruto out of this situation if you had to?"

Hinata didn't even need to think about that. "Of course I would!" she said vehemently.

Shikamaru sighed deeply. "It's a total drag, but yeah, I would. I know Naruto would never do what they say he did, and I don't care what rules we have to break, we should get him out of this," he said.

Kakashi smiled to himself. _"I do believe they just passed my test without ever taking it," _he thought to himself. "Come on," he said aloud, "Naruto was taken to the Hokage Tower, so we should go there to be by his side."

xxxxxx

A short time after Naruto's arrest, the remainder of Team Seven arrived at the Hokage Tower. Following Kakashi's lead, the two Genin went up to the windows which led to the Hokage's office. Seeing that his third student was currently in the room in question, Kakashi led the other two in through a window. All three of them were arrayed around their fourth team member within seconds.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, Third Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, looked at the team that had suddenly appeared before him in surprise. "What is the meaning of this, Kakashi?"

To his surprise, it was Shikamaru who responded. "If one member of Team Seven is in trouble, then all of Team Seven is in trouble," he said. "For you see, we are a team, and that means we are one. Now please don't ask so many troublesome questions."

Naruto had his back to his team, so only Hiruzen could see the tears streaming from the boy's eyes. He had never been so touched by anything before. Kakashi simply eye-smiled at Shikamaru's words. He was proud of his student. _"I'm already thinking of them as mine,"_ he thought to himself. _"Guess there's no way I can get out of taking on this team now...even if I wanted to."_

"Good answer, Shikamaru," Hiruzen said, chuckling softly. "Now, Naruto, you were about to tell me exactly how it is that you know the Shadow Clone Jutsu."

Hinata gasped softly. _"If he tells the Hokage that, now, in front of the whole team, I'll have to tell them all!"_ she thought frantically. Her mind went into overdrive trying to come up with some way to avert what she was sure was imminent disaster, but, as it was unable to come up with anything, she did the next best thing: she fainted for the second time in less than an hour.

Kakashi caught the falling girl instinctively and allowed her to gently rest on the floor. Hiruzen shot a questioning look at the masked Jonin, who shrugged. He had no idea what to make of that, either. Naruto sighed and shook his head. _"I thought she was over that,"_ he thought to himself.

Hiruzen shook his head and prompted Naruto, "So, how exactly do you know that jutsu?"

Naruto sighed. "Hinata taught it to me," he said. At the questioning look he got, he continued, "I'm really not sure how she knows it, especially since she told me she can't _do_ it, but she was able to teach it to me."

Hiruzen raised an eyebrow at that, but he decided to trust the blond boy; prankster or not, Naruto had never been one to lie. Regardless, he decided then and there he'd have a talk with Hinata about this later. "Now, as to what you are accused of, are you aware you were the last person seen with Iruka before he disappeared?"

"Well, sure I was, he took Hinata and me out for ramen to celebrate our graduation. But there's no way I kidnapped him! I'd never do that!" the blond exclaimed.

"Well, from what we gather, one of Iruka's neighbors heard him coming home last evening. He said he heard the voice of a young boy with him, then heard a loud thud, like someone was hit on the head, then when he looked, Iruka was gone," Hiruzen explained. "When asked, he picked out your voice, Naruto."

Naruto was shocked. "I never went anywhere near his place last night!" he said. "Ask Hinata, she and I were out on the training grounds till late last night."

Hearing her name somehow returned Hinata to consciousness. She sat up, blinking and shaking her head. Naruto couldn't help thinking she was too cute for words. "Perfect timing, Hinata," Hiruzen said. "Naruto here says you and he were on the training grounds until late last night. Is this true?"

Hinata nodded. "Yes, it's true, Lord Hokage," she said simply. "We had a few things to discuss in private, so we went out there. It took a bit longer than expected, and we didn't return home until late."

Hiruzen smiled. "Then there's no way he could have kidnapped your former sensei. I thought as much," he said. "Okay, you four, I'm assigning you your first mission, effective immediately. Kakashi, this is a C-rank mission due to the fact you will most likely have at least one ninja to deal with, and it is ranked an S-class secret, which is why I am assigning it to your team. Do you accept?"

"I do, Lord Hokage, and I'm sure my team will exceed your expectations," the masked Jonin replied.

Hiruzen smiled. "Good, I'm glad to hear it," he said simply. "Now, Naruto, officially, I have to keep you in custody until all this is figured out. However, I won't have the real you. Create a Shadow Clone with enough chakra to last a couple days." Naruto nodded and created a single clone. Naruto stepped back out of sight as Hiruzen called in one of his aides. Pointing at the clone, he said, "Take him to the holding cells. I'll deal with him myself later." The Chunin took the clone by the arm and led him away. Turning to Team Seven, Hiruzen told them, "Now that that's done, the mission I'm giving you four is to get to the bottom of Iruka's kidnapping. Naruto, you're going to have to use the transformation jutsu for the time being. You can't be in prison and out there doing this at the same time."

Naruto chuckled. "I can't," he said, then formed a hand sign and transformed into Iruka, "but I can."

Hiruzen chuckled. "That's very clever, Naruto. And you're right, Iruka can indeed be out there during this. In fact, this will also help keep his current plight as secret as possible, which is a good thing as well," he said. He was proud of his shinobi. "Okay, you four, you have your mission. Get going!" he said.

"Yes, sir!" all four responded before vanishing from the office through the window.

Hiruzen, alone, chuckled. "I do believe that's the first time Naruto's ever called me 'sir'...and he didn't even do it as himself!" he said, laughing cheerfully.

xxxxxx

Team Seven had spent several hours looking for Iruka. There was no sign of the man anywhere. Well, except for the fake one that was really Naruto, that is. Naruto's choice of disguise, while clever, was also a bit problematic, as it led to a rather awkward situation when Naruto ran into someone he had never set eyes on in his life yet was...avidly pursuing him for some reason.

"Iruka! Get your cute ass back here!" the bluish-black-haired woman yelled. Her light brown eyes glinted with determination and playfulness, and Naruto had to admit the prankster's grin on her face was somewhat attractive...if she'd been about ten years younger! It was obvious this woman knew she was attractive: the mesh suit she was wearing did very little to hide her figure, and her entire attitude was sexually forward. Naruto put on more speed, much to the woman's ire. "I said get back here, Iruka!" she growled.

"_That was almost hot,"_ Naruto thought to himself. Then two thoughts crossed his mind at the same time: first, that it was a VERY good thing Hinata couldn't read his thoughts or he'd be dead after _that_ one, and second, that he wasn't sure whether to envy Iruka-sensei or to pity him for having _this_ woman pursuing him.

This whole situation did have two completely unintended effects. One was very beneficial to the secrecy of Team Seven's mission: pretty much EVERYONE in the village would later swear they saw Anko Mitarashi chasing Iruka Umino around the entire village that day. The second, and far less beneficial, effect didn't actually happen until Naruto had evaded the crazy woman for over an hour. In frustration, Anko unleashed a volley of snakes, which wrapped around the hapless Genin and lifted him off his feet. Anko would absolutely NEVER admit to how he ended up escaping that particular situation, but the feel of all those slithery, gross snakes wrapped around his torso and immobilizing him infused Naruto with a lifelong phobia of the slithery creatures. One of them sticking its forked tongue in his ear certainly didn't help matters, either.

Anko approached her helpless captive, grinning in such a way that it convinced Naruto this woman was completely insane. Then he remembered what she'd said about "him" and, in a moment of sheer desperation, leaned forward and kissed her when she came in range. In her shock, Anko released him from her snakes' grasp. Naruto had never moved so fast as he did the moment he hit the ground, not even when he'd had an entire squad of ANBU chasing after him. Once he was out of sight, Naruto alternated between spitting furiously to get the taste of the woman off his lips and wiping at his ear as if he wanted to wipe it off after having felt that creepy tongue there. _"I will NEVER antagonize a snake again!"_ he swore to himself as he ran.

Just as he was thinking this, Naruto felt something hard slam into the back of his head, just below the base of his skull, and everything went black.

xxxxxx

While Naruto was being terrorized by Anko, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Kakashi were searching through one abandoned building after another in an attempt to figure out where Iruka was. They were slowly coming to the conclusion that wherever he was, he was either underground or being physically guarded by his captor, who they had also yet to either find or figure out who he was.

Hinata was still sort of reeling from all the changes she had accidentally caused by helping Naruto to pass the exam. All she did was help out a friend, and now their sensei had been kidnapped, and everyone thought Naruto did it for some weird reason! Wait...suddenly the obvious conclusion slammed full-force into Hinata's mind. Mizuki! It had to be him. After all, he _had_ tried to get Naruto arrested or killed the first time around. This whole mess with Iruka must have been his contingency plan since Naruto passed.

Turning to Kakashi, she spoke up in her quiet voice, "Kakashi-sensei, I believe I know who Iruka-sensei's kidnapper is."

Kakashi looked at his kunoichi student with his one visible eye widening and asked incredulously, "Really? Who?"

Hinata sighed and responded, "I can't say how I have come to this conclusion, but I have reason to believe Iruka-sensei has fallen victim to the machinations of our other former sensei, Mizuki."

Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow in surprise, but he didn't detect any deception in his student's eyes. "If that's the case, that changes things a bit. We are no longer simply attempting to rescue a comrade, we are now also attempting to track down a traitor and carry out his punishment," he said. Turning his attention to both Shikamaru and Hinata, he told them, "Remember this, both of you. A ninja who breaks the rules is scum, but anyone who abandons his friends is worse than scum."

Shikamaru nodded after a moment. "And we will not abandon our comrade," he said simply. Hinata and Kakashi nodded.

Kakashi focused on Hinata again. "Would you recognize Mizuki's chakra signature if you saw it?" he asked. Hinata thought a moment, then nodded. "Good. See if you can expand your Byakugan's view far enough to find Mizuki and/or Naruto. If you can, we'll rendezvous with Naruto and formulate a strategy to rescue Iruka from Mizuki."

Hinata did as she was told and looked for a while. After a few moments, she gasped and deactivated her Byakugan. Turning to her sensei and teammate, she said, "Well, I have some good news and some bad news." The other two nodded and waited. "The good news is I found both Naruto and Mizuki," she said. Taking a breath, she added, "The bad news is, I found them together."

A/N: Dun dun DUN! I did it again! Another evil cliffhanger on this story! I swear, I'll do my best to continue it sooner this time. I hope you all enjoyed!


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